Technology Breakthroughs

Innovation is one of our four values, and it is evidenced in our breakthrough products. Hexcel currently holds more than 1,350 patents and pending applications worldwide. At Hexcel, aiming for what seems an unrealistic goal, or challenging some long-held paradigm are springboards to discovery and thinking "outside the box." We embrace the curiosity to explore ideas, the passion to challenge the impossible and the conviction to succeed beyond expectations.

In our 68 years of innovation:

Hexcel was the first company to develop an adhesive for bonding metal to metal, reducing aircraft weight and revolutionizing the industry.

Hexcel was the first company to manufacture honeycomb on a commercial scale.

Hexcel was instrumental in developing the first prepregs for use in wind turbine blades.

Hexcel materials were the first to land on the moon in the energy absorbing footpads of Apollo 11 that were built from Hexcel's aluminum honeycomb.

In 2008, Hexcel was awarded the biggest contract in its history to supply the primary structures prepreg for the Airbus A350 XWB. Hexcel had developed a superior product combining carbon fiber and resin formulation technologies.